Why Do We See Ourselves So Negatively? – Little Lucky Ladybug by Melissa Carter. Book Review.

The message in this picture book is important, “each person in the world is unique and special.” The little ladybug visits a honeybee, a butterfly, an ant, and a spider. Each of these insects feel depressed about their self identity. They all say to her “Lucky Ladybug, you are a beautiful sight to see./You are a sign of luck, a delicate bug, and you are lovelier than me./You are always welcomed into people’s cozy homes./Your little lucky wings let you fly, sore and roam.” In return she tells them about their own wonderful attributes.

I love the pattern in the story. The only problem is, I felt the text was a bit too wordy. If you read it out loud it almost becomes a tongue twister. This seems to be a book written for very young children and a pattern that they could have echoed would have been preferable. I also think the attempt to make it a rhyming book slowed it down. It may have worked better as a simple narrative, perhaps just with the little rhyme each insect says to the ladybug (shortened and simplified). The best way to read it out loud, is to ignore the rhyme and read it as though it is an expressive narrative.

The illustrations, by Jeanne A. Benas, are gorgeous. They are simple, but vibrant and expressive. They fairly pop off the page. I especially love the one of the caterpillar looking in the mirror to see a butterfly.

After the story, the author has included some activity pages for children: a maze, a dot to dot, three pictures to color, and a journaling response page.